Why Are There So Many Books About Bears?

This characterful hardback book raises a very good question – why ARE there so many books about bears? It’s a funny premise and although the pictures appeal from a young age, the language and ideas within the book reach right up into 9+.  The question raised is about fiction and why there are so many books about these fluffy creatures so the more reading experience you have, the funnier you will find the book. (It would also be handy to have a certain amount of knowledge about famous intellectual figures to appreciate William Snakespeare and Albert Swinestein etc.)
 
The illustrations are great with a mixture of different fonts to make the whole text really interactive and fun. Different creatures have gathered together to answer the question about bears and each has a turn to explain their theory. When they do there is a good opportunity for some black and white drawings again adding to the dynamics of the read.  The theories range from bear being a good rhyming word to bears are very similar to humans and as it’s humans who write books, of course they’ll choose to put bears in them!
 
All the way through the book there is a continuing theme with a ‘knockety knock’ – someone is trying to offer the debaters tea and cake but they keep refusing. This is an enjoyable repeat throughout until you find out who is behind the door with a special pull out page.
 
The book would start a lovely debate and indeed at the end there is a new question to answer maybe a sequel OR children could write their own answer which would be a fantastic class activity.